Monday, June 4, 2012

My Summer Reads

Like
many of you, I’m never without a book to read. One might say I'm a book addict. To keep withdrawal symptoms at bay, I have unread books stashed all over the house plus two Kindles and an
iPad ready to roll. Here
are a few of the books I’ve been reading this summer:

The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown

Written
in plural first person—all three sisters are telling the story—the book was
initially a challenge for me. Darn it, I wanted to know precisely who was telling the story! But once I
became accustomed to the plural point of view, I was drawn up in the story of
the three adult sisters, each with a unique problem, descending upon the family
home when their mother is diagnosed with breast cancer. The eccentric father of
Bianca, Roselyn and Cordelia is a professor of Shakespeare in a small college
town and speaks to his family in obscure Shakespearean couplets, open to
interpretation. Back home, the three sisters struggle to escape from their old
familiar roles and resolve their problems. Although I didn’t read the book in
one sitting, I was glad I persevered. It had a satisfying, hopeful ending.

The
Roadside Crosses
by Jeffrey Deaver

I
discovered mystery writer Jeffrey Deaver last winter and have been gobbling up
his books ever since. This book features one of my favorite characters, Kathryn
Dance. Dance is an agent for the California Bureau of Investigation and known
as “the human lie detector.” She’s a kinesics expert, trained in the art of
reading people’s body language and facial expressions. Set on the Monterrey
Peninsula, this case involves a killer who leaves roadside crosses before the murder takes place. The main
suspect is teenager Travis Brigham, a young man who prefers the synthetic world
of gaming to the real world in which he is the victim of ridicule and bullying.
But, like all of Deaver’s books, there are many twists and turns before the
mystery is solved. Deaver handles the story with skill, intricately weaving
together Dance’s professional and private life. If you like a good mystery,
this one’s for you.

A Gate at
the Stairs by
Lorrie Moore (spoiler alert)

Okay,
if you’re bubbling over with joy and happiness and would like to dial it down a
notch, this book will do the job. In fact, it might send you spiraling into
depression. Not much of a recommendation, is it? The main character, Tassie
Keltjin, tells the story and, I swear, she made me crazy. It’s like she didn’t
know which thread to pick up and see through until the end. The book received
rave reviews so maybe I just didn’t get it. First, we have college student Tassie
hiring on as a nanny for a dysfunctional couple who adopt a bi-racial
two-year-old. Tassie and the child bond. Big time. It’s beautiful. It’s
touching. Then, the child is removed from the home. Does Tassie mourn? Who
knows? We don’t hear about the kid from that point on. She also has a relationship
with a guy who turns out to be a Jihadist. The third plot element involves herer
younger brother, Robert, who desperately needs her advice. She ignores his
email. He joins the military and is killed by a roadside bomb. At his funeral,
she climbs in the coffin with him. Oh, please! So, if you’re into a meandering
plot with bizarre twists, go for it. That said, Moore does write lovely,
lyrical prose. It may be worth reading for that alone.